Improvement in gas-meters



c. c. LLoYn."""--- GAS METERS.

No. 175,865. Patented Apri111,1a7s.

MPETERS. PHOTD-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. D C.

Fries.

I. CHARLES C. LLOYD, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THOMASC. HOPPER, OFSAME PLACE.

|MPRovEMEN'r |N GAS-METERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 175,865, dated April11, 1876; application filed j March 3, 1876.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GHARLEs C. LLOYD, a resident of the city ofPhiladelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new anduseful Improvement in Gas-Meters, which improvement is fully set forthin the following specification, reference" being had to the accompanyingdrawings.

The object of my invention is twofold-first, to prevent any variation inthe distance between the two ends of the case within which the drumrotates, and, second, to provide against the creakng noise or tremulousand thumping motions of the drum which frequently occur during therotary motion of the same in its journal-bearings; and these desirableand important results I obtain by a construction whereby the drum ispermitted to be rotated freely on a stationary cylindrical shaft, whichpasses longitudinally through the center of the drum, and has its twoends fixed rigidly in the respective centers of the two end plates orheads of the cpntaining-case, as will now be described.

Referring to the drawings, A is the case; B, the mcasuringdrum; and C,the shaft. The rear end of the shaft C is keyed fast in a socket in theinnerend of a hollow, flanged casting, a', which is fixed to projectinward from a 'central opening in the rear end of the case A, and isprovided with an opening through its upper side for the introduction andsealing of the usual supply-pipe, (indicated by the dotted lines d inFig. 1,) which extends upward in the usual manner above the waterlineindicated by the dotted line r. The front end of said shaft C extendsforward and passes through a corresponding holein the center of anothercasting, a, which projects inward and is secured by an outside flange inthe center of the front end plate of the case A. The projecting end ofsaid shaft is screw-cut to receive ascrew-nut, 5, whereby said end ofthe"` shaft is firmly secured in the center of said front end of thecase A. (See Fig. l.) The drum B has fixed .permanently in the center ofeach of its two ends a tubular bearing, b', which ts accurately aroundthe shaft G, like a sleeve, and extends inward so as to afford a lengthybearing whereby the said drum will rotate smoothly upon the stationaryshaft C during the operation of the meter. In building the drum B, thetubular bearings b' b are first slipped upon the cylindrical shaft C andadjusted at the requisite distance -apart to fit the case A, and thenthe hoods and other requisite parts secured to said bearings b b in apermanent manner, and consequently a permanent and accurate alignment ofthe two said tubular bearings b b', in respect to each other, isobtained. In finally putting the two completed parts A and B together,the drum B is slipped upon the shaft O, and the rear end of the latterkeyed rigidly and firmly to the casting af, in the center of the rearend of the case A, and the front end of said shaft inserted through thehole in the center of the casting a of the front end or head of the caseA, the spur-wheel 3 applied to gear into the pinion 4, and, finally, thescrew-nut 5 applied to the shaft G and screwed up firmly against thecasting a, as represented in Fig. l. In the construction of thestation-meters now in use the shaft of the drum is rigidly ixed longitudinally through the center of the drum with the two ends of saidshaft projecting so as to form short journals for supporting the saiddrum in correspondingly-short bearings rigidly fixed in the respectiveends of the case; and as these meters are required to be of largecapacity, or capable of holding, say, from twenty to thirty tous ofwater, and the said case to be constructed in two or more transversesections, subsequently bolted together, it is diicult to bring the twoend-bearings, which support the journals of the drum, into perfectalignment with each other, and conse quently a binding eii'ect isproduced between the bearings and journals; and, moreover, as thesurface-line of the water is but a few inch- 'es above the end bearingsin which the respective journals of the drum rotate, the end pressure ofthe water is mainly against the lower half of each of the end plates orheads ofthe case, springing their lower halves outward, and consequentlystill further forcing the said end bearings out of alignment with eachother, and causing the creaking noise and tremulous thumping motionsduring the operation of the meter, especially after the water has beenimpregnated with the ammonia of the gas which acts as an anti-lubricant.Another defect arises in these old meters from the fact that thejournals and their bearings are necessarily very short, and thereforethe surface-bearin gs are still further shortened by the pressure of thewater in springing outward the ends or heads of the case.

All the objections above referred to are entire- 1y obviated by myinvention, because the shaft C serves as a tie-bar and eiectuallyprevents the ends or heads of the case A from being sprung outward bythe pressure of the contained water, and the shaft being rigidly iixed,the alignment of its bearings in the ends of the case A is of noimportance; and because the drum B turns or rotates upon the shaft, andhas tubular bearings b b', which can be extended inward indefinitely,and thus afford ample bearing-surfaces between them and the shaft,which, being smooth, accurately fitted, and in perfect alignment, allcreaking, thumping, and tremulous motions of the drum will be avoided.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination, in a gas-meter,substantially as described, of' the xed or stationary shaft C, with theends of the case A, for the twofold purpose of supporting the rotarydrum B and preventing the said ends 0f the case from being sprungoutward by the pressure of the water thereinf`/ 2. The tubular bearingsb b of the"rotary drum B, in combination with a fixed or stationaryshaft in the case A, substantially as described, for the purpose ofsupporting the drum and allowing a perfectly free, steady, and noiselessrotary motion of the same upon the fixed or stationary shaft, ashereinbefore explained.

GHAS. 4C. LLOYD. Witnesses:

BENJ. MoRIsoN,

WM. H. MORIsoN.

